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How to set up and use Samsung DeX on your Galaxy phone or tablet
Turning your phone into an actual computer is easy
As smartphones become more advanced, carrying a laptop for your daily needs is unnecessary. These pocket-sized supercomputers can handle most of our day-to-day tasks in a few clicks, from ordering at a restaurant to promoting a business on social media. However, smartphone screens aren't the best for complex tasks. Having a desktop screen is more feasible for viewing.
It's easy to forget that today's smart devices are portable supercomputers. A budget Android phone is several times more powerful than the earliest computer model, so imagine comparing the flagships. Despite all that power, you're limited to a small screen that doesn't offer the same experience as a laptop or desktop. Thanks to Samsung Dex, that isn't the case anymore.
Samsung's Apple-looking Bluetooth keyboard for DeX is now official
It'll work with just about anything, but using it with Galaxy gadgets unlocks some more functions
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Samsung is introducing a new Bluetooth keyboard designed for those who work on the go. Compatible with your desktop, tablet, phone, and whatever else you can think of, the Smart Keyboard Trio 500 apes recent designs from Apple and Logitech with a triple-device quick switch function, but it’s built from the ground up with the company’s DeX software in mind.Taking a glance at the Trio 500, you might mistake it for an Apple Magic keyboard, or an Anker design built along the same lines. But the function row has a few extra tools included, on top of the usual device one, two, and three switches. It has a function button to activate DeX, the desktop-style interface for Samsung phones and tablets, and three quick app launch functions. Naturally both of those features only work on a Galaxy device compatible with DeX.
Wireless DeX for PC now works with Galaxy devices running One UI 3.1
Galaxy tablets are still left in the cold
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When Samsung announced that DeX would be going wireless in One UI 2.5, which was introduced on the Note20, I was excited. Until that point, I'd hardly touched the app because of the requirement to plug my phone into my PC. Sadly, wireless DeX only worked with compatible TVs and monitors, leaving most computers in the cold. Now with One UI 3.1, that's finally changed.
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Bixby has never been the most popular voice assistant, but that hasn't stopped Samsung from finding ways to make us use it. From the dedicated Bixby button, to mapping it to the power key itself, Samsung would clearly like this to be a success. Its latest effort to entice users over to Bixby is a fresh new design that should look eerily familiar to anyone familiar with Google Assistant. But is a new coat of paint enough to make Bixby worthwhile?
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ hands-on: Android's never had a tablet this good
Handsome design, powerful performance, and useful accessories — but is the cost worth it?
Android tablets have always been a bit awkward, as products. With the platform lacking the huge ecosystem of tablet-optimized apps that the iPad enjoys, or the large desktop legacy world you can access on something like a Surface Pro, many have asked the question "Why?" when it comes to an Android-powered slate. Perhaps it's not really one worth asking, though, when a company as large as Samsung is bothering to introduce an $850 tablet at all. With the Tab S7 and S7+, Samsung is bringing a capital-P "Premium" tablet hardware experience, and we've spent the last few days using the latter.
Samsung and LG could release portable monitors that hook up to your smartphone
Both companies are reportedly working on competing products while assessing demand
Modern flagship phones have grown more powerful than one could’ve imagined a few years ago. Their ascent has fueled the development of features like Samsung DeX, which tweaks the phone’s UI to imitate a classic desktop and open windowed apps. These modes have so far been restricted to stationary desk setups as they require a monitor along with a keyboard and mouse to function. The two big South Korean brands—Samsung and LG—apparently want you to take the experience wherever you go thanks to portable monitors they're currently working on.
LG’s 2019 flagship lineup recently began receiving their Android 10 builds packed with goodies like full gesture navigation and the December 2019 security patch. One feature that remained obscure without even a mention in the changelog was the built-in desktop mode, discovered by Juan Carlos Bagnell (SomeGadgetGuy). The implementation appears to be a close sibling of Samsung’s DeX, minus the fancy branding.
The desktop environment that turns your Samsung phone or tablet into a PC when connected to an external display, nicknamed 'DeX,' has been around for a while now. Nearly a year ago, Samsung introduced the Linux on DeX beta, which could run a full Linux OS on top of DeX. Sadly, the project seems to have been discontinued.
Earlier this month, we reported Samsung DeX would support a new mode that lets you run it as a window on your desktop. Naturally, in order to achieve this, you would need to install a dedicated app on your computer, which wasn't available until today. Samsung just released it on its site, and you can now download it for Windows and macOS.
Samsung DeX is a neat way of turning your phone or tablet into an actual computer. At first, the system required you to connect your device to a dock, but has since evolved to forgo that requirement and work directly when plugged into a monitor with a simple USB-C to HDMI cable. With the Note10, DeX now supports a new mode that lives inside your operating system so that your phone's and computer's features can co-exist on the same screen.
There sure are a lot of gadgets around. Consumers today own laptops, desktops, tablets, televisions, e-readers, smartphones, smartwatches, smart speakers, smart displays, smart TVs, and smart everything-elses in myriad combinations. If you’re economically fortunate enough, you might own at least one of each of these categories of products, and for some categories, probably more than one.
More than two years after Samsung announced its original Dex dock, Plugable designed a competitor that can work with virtually any USB-C device. The Cube is a tiny hub that connects to your device through an external cable and acts as a dock to link it to USB peripherals, a monitor, and even an external network.
Linux on DeX, announced at a developer conference last year, is a program that lets you run Linux (Ubuntu, in this case) on your Samsung smartphone or tablet, turning it into a full-fledged computer. Initially, it only worked on the Galaxy Note 9 and Tab S4, but with today's update, both Galaxy S9 and S10 families are now supported (along with, for some reason, the mid-range Tab S5e).
Samsung debuted DeX last year to make your phone behave a bit more like a computer when plugged into a monitor. This year, DeX functionality has improved so you don't need to expensive custom dock, just a video cable. At Samsung's developer conference last week, it announced DeX would also get full Linux support. It's only officially available to those in the beta program, but we've got the APK.
It may not be perfect quite yet, but Samsung's DeX implementation for using your phone as a desktop computer actually works better than expected. In response to user requests, it seems the development team behind DeX is now working towards making DeX connections even more accessible by removing the need for a cable.
Samsung first introduced its DeX line of docks alongside the Galaxy S8, angling it as a simpler way of getting work done while on the go without having to lug a laptop or desktop around. However, multiple independent sources have confirmed that the upcoming Note9 and Tab S4 will be able to use the DeX desktop experience without the need for a DeX dock.
Samsung DeX is a feature on the S8/S8+, Note8, and S9+/S9+ that allows you to dock your phone and use it as a basic desktop computer. An updated DeX Pad launched alongside the Galaxy S9 and S9+, and it has already gone on sale once. Now it's down to half its original price - just $49.99.The DeX Pad has two USB 3.0 Type-A ports, an HDMI output, and a USB Type-C port for charging. If you don't have a USB keyboard and mouse handy, you can use your phone as a trackpad or touch keyboard. There's also a fan, so your phone doesn't get too toasty.Source: Amazon
The Galaxy S9 and S9+ debuted with the DeX Pad, a revised version of last year's DeX Station with a different form factor. If its $99.99 MSRP was a little too dear for you, perhaps the discount that Amazon is currently offering will help change your mind.The DeX Pad's different design allows your phone to be used as a keyboard or a trackpad. A fan underneath keeps things cool, and there are two USB ports, a USB Type-C port for power, and an HDMI output. A Fast Charge wall charger, a USB Type-C cable, and an HDMI cable are included in the box. The DeX Pad was initially only compatible with the Galaxy S9 and S9+, though the Amazon title now mentions the Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8+, and Galaxy Note8 as well.If you work away from home a lot and don't want to lug a laptop everywhere, the DeX Pad might be worth your consideration. Hit the source link below to pick one up.Source: Amazon